
Airbag system
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located in
the center of the instrument panel
r::;,fig. 168.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come on
and stay on to tell you when the front Advanced
Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off
by the electronic control unit. Each time you turn
on the ignition, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will flash for a few seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
-will stay on if there is a small child or child re
straint on the front passenger seat,
- will go out if the front passenger seat is occu
pied by an adult as registered by the weight
sensing mat.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must come
on and stay on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been installed on the front seat,
or
- a rearward-facing child restraint has been in
stalled on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward-facing child restraint has been instal
led on the front passenger seat, or
- the weight registered on the front passenger
seat is equal to or less than the combined
weight of a typical 1 year-old restrained in one
of the rear-facing or forward-facing infant re
straints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 with which the Advanced Airbag
System in your vehicle was certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied, the
front airbag will not deploy, and the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on. Never install a
rearward-facing child restraint on the front pas
senger seat, the safest place for a child in any
kind of child restraint is at one of the seating po
sitions on the rear seat
r::;, page 152, Child re
straints on the front seat -some important
things to know
and <=> page 171, Child safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when one of the conditions listed above is met,
be sure to check the light regularly to make cer
tain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
stays on continuously whenever the ignition is
on. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
162
not appear and not stay on all the time, stop as
soon as it is safe to do so and
- reactivate the system by turning the ignition
off and then turning it on again ;
- remove and reinstall the child restraint. Make
sure that the child restraint is properly instal
led and that the safety belt for the front pas
senger seat has been correctly routed around
the child restraint as described in the child re
straint manufacturer's instructions;
- make sure that the convertible locking feature
on the safety belt for the front passenger seat
has been activated and that the safety belt has
been pulled tight. The belt must not be loose or
have loops of slack so that the sensor below the
safety belt latch on the seat can do its job
c:::;,page 180.
-make sure that things that may increase the
weight of the child and child safety seat are not
being transported on the front passenger seat;
- make sure that the safety belt tension sensor is
not blocked. Shake the safety belt latch on the
front passenger seatback and forth;
- If a strap or tether is being used to tie the child
safety seat to the front passenger seat, make
sure that it is not so tight that it causes the
weight-sensing mat to measure more weight
than is actually on the seat.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still does
not come on
and does not stay on continuously
(when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passenger
seat and install it properly at one of the rear
seat positions. Have the airbag system inspect
ed by your authorized Audi dealer immediately .
- move the child to a rear seat position and make
sure that the child is properly restrained in a
child restraint that is appropriate for its size
and age.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should NOT
come on when the ignition is on and an adult is
sitting in a proper seating position on the front
passenger seat.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or flashes for about
5 seconds while driving, under these circumstan-
ces, make sure that:
1111>

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ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
his or her back up against the backrest and the
backrest is not reclined
9 page 135 , Correc t
passenger seating positions,
- the adult is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assis t handle
above the front passenger door or suppor ting
their weight on the armrest,
- the safety bel t is being properly worn and that
there is not a lot of slack in the safety belt web
bing,
- accessory seat covers or cushions or other
things that may cause an incorrect reading or
impression on the weight-sensing mat under
the upholstery of the seat have been removed
from the front passenger seat,
- a safety belt extender has not been left in the
safety belt latch for the front passenger seat.
In addition to the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel, the
message
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF or PASSEN
GER AIR BAG ON
will briefly appear in the instru
ment cluster display . This is to inform the driver
of the current front passenger airbag status.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning prop erly cannot provide supplemental protection
in a frontal crash .
- If the airbag indicator light
9 page 16
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer. It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a child without a
child restraint, in a rearward-facing child safe
ty seat or in a forward-facing child restraint
that has not been properly installed will be
seriously injured and can be killed.
Airbag system
-Even though your vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced Airbag System, make certain
that all children, especially 12 years and
younger, always ride on the back seat prop erly restrained for their age and size .
- Always install forward or rear-facing child
safety seats on the rear seat -even with an
Advanced Airbag System .
- If you must install a rearward-facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
appear and stay on, immediately install the
rear-facing child safety seat in a rear seating
position and have the airbag system in
spected by your authorized Audi dealer.
-A tight tether or other strap on a rearward
facing child restraint attached to the front passenger seat can put too much pressure
on the weight-sensing mat in the seat and
register more weight than is actually on the
seat . The heavier weight registered can
make the system work as though an adult
were on the seat and deploy the Advanced
Airbag when it must be suppressed causing
serious or even fatal injury to the child.
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat, always move the
seat into its rearmost position in the seat's
fore and aft adjustment range, as far away
from the airbag as possible. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position .
Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
-- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go out when an adult is sitting on the
front passenger seat after taking the steps
described above, make sure the adult is
properly seated and restrained at one of the rear seating positions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer before transporting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
163

Airbag system
(D Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front passen
ger seat detects an empty seat, the front air
bag on the passenger side will be turned off,
and
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF will stay on.
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the airbag system are installed at many
different places on your Audi. Installing , remov
ing, servicing or repairing a part in an area of the
vehicle can damage a part of an airbag system and prevent that system from working properly in a collision.
There are some important things you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of the
system will not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environment.
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de
ploying when needed or deploying an airbag
unexpectedly:
-
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer
ing wheel horn pad or airbag cover or the in
strument panel or modify them in any way .
- Never attach any objects such as cupholders
or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov
ering the airbag units.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one mois
tened with plain water. Solvents or cleaners could damage the airbag cover or change
the stiffness or strength of the material so
that the airbag cannot deploy and protect properly.
- Never repair, adjust , or change any parts of
the airbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instrument
panel, front seats or electrical system (in
cluding the installation of audio equipment,
cellular telephones and CB radios, etc.)
must be performed by a qualified technician
164
who has the training and special equipment necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that you see your au
thorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop .
- Never modify the front bumper or parts of
the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the side airbag can
inflate without interference:
- Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not been specifically approved by
Audi .
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags in
flate.
- Damage to the original seat covers or to
the seam in the area of the side airbag
module must always be repaired immedi
ately by an authorized Audi dealer .
- The airbag system can be activated only
once . After an airbag has inflated, it must
be replaced by an authorized Audi dealer or
qualified technician who has the technical
information, training and special equipment
necessary.
- The airbag system can be deployed only
once . After an airbag has been deployed, it
must be replaced with new replacement
parts designed and approved especially for
your Audi model version. Replacement of complete airbag systems or airbag compo
nents must be performed by qualified work
shops only. Make sure that any airbag serv
ice action is entered in your Audi Warranty
& Maintenance booklet under AIRBAG RE
PLACEMENT RECORD.
- In accidents when an airbag is deployed, the
vehicle battery separates the alternator and
the starter from the vehicle electrical sys
tem for safety reasons with a pyrotechnic
circuit interrupter.
- Work on the pyrotechnic circuit interrupt
er must only be performed by a qualified
dealer - risk of an accident!
- If the vehicle or the circuit interrupter is
scrapped, all applicable safety precautions
must be followed.
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al protection, the side airbag must inflate wit hin
a fraction of a second at very high speed and w ith
great force. The supplemental side airbag could injure you if your seating position is not proper or
upright or if items are located in the area where
the supplemental side airbag expands . This ap
p lies especially to children
c::> page 171, Child
safety.
Supp lemental side a irbags inflate be
tween the oc cupan t and the door pane l on the
side of the vehicle that is s truck in certa in side
collision
c::> fig . 170.
Although they are not a soft pi llow, they can
"c ushion" the impact and in th is way they can
h e lp to reduce the risk of injury to the upper part
of the body .
A fi ne dust may develop when the airbag deploys.
This is normal and does no t mean there is a fire
in the vehicle.
Important safety instructions on the side
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . Always
properly wear safety belts and ride in a proper seating position.
There is a lot that yo u and your passengers must
know and act accordingly to help the safety belts
and airbags do their job to provide supp lemental
protection .
A WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause ser ious or
fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety belts
and improper seating positions increase the
r is k of se rious personal injury and death
whenever a veh icle is being used.
- In order to reduce the r isk of injury when
the suppleme ntal s ide airbag inflates:
- Always sit in an upright position an d never
lean aga inst the area where the s upple-
mental side airbag is located .
- Never let a chi ld or anyone else rest their
head against the side trim panel in the
area where the supp lemental s ide airbag
inflates.
Airb ag sys tem
-Always make sure that safety belts a re
worn correctly,
- Do not let anyone sitting in the front seat
put their hand o r any other parts of their
body out of the window .
- Always make sure that the s ide a irbag can
inflate w ithout interference.
- Never install seat covers or replacement
upholste ry ove r the front seatbacks that
have not been specifica lly approved by
Audi.
- Never use addi tional seat cushions that
cove r the areas where the side airbags de
ploy .
- Dam age to the orig inal seat cove rs or to
the se am in the area of the s ide airbag
module must a lways be repaired immedi
ate ly by an authorized Au di dealer.
- Obje cts between you and the airbag can in
crease the r isk of injury in an accident by in
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds or
by being pushed into you as the airbag in
flates .
- Never place or attach accessor ies or other
o bjects (such as cupholders, telephone
br acket s, or even large, bul ky objec ts) on
the doors, over or near the area mar ke d
"AIRBAG" on the seat backrests .
- Such objec ts an d accessories can be come
dange rous p rojecti les and cause injury
when the supplemental side airbag de
ploys.
- Never carry any objects or pets in the de
ployment space between them and the
airbags or allow children or other passen
gers to trave l in this position.
- Always use the b uilt-in coat hooks only for
lightweight clothing. Never leave any heavy
or sharp-edged objects in the pockets that
may interfere with s ide airbag deployment
a nd can cause personal injury in an accident .
- Always p revent the side ai rbags from being
damaged by heavy objects knocking against
or hitting the s ides of the seatbac ks .
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once . If the airbag has been triggered, the
system must be replaced by an autho rized
Aud i deale rship.
167

Airbag system
Important safety instructions on the side
curtain airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Always
properly wear safety belts and ride in a proper
seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
know and do to help the safety belts and airbags
do their job to provide supplemental protection.
A WARNING
Improperly wearing safety belts and improper
seating positions increase the risk of serious
personal injury and death whenever a vehicle
is being used .
- Never let occupants place any parts of their
bodies in the area from which the side cur
tain airbags inflate.
- Always make sure that the side curtain air
bags can inflate without interference. Un
suitable accessories fitted inside the expan
sion range of a head airbag can dangerously interfere with its function . A deploying head
airbag develops enough force to catapult
any piece of add-on component out of its
path of inflation and into the passenger
compartment. An occupant hit by such a
projectile can suffer serious injury or death
Q page 282, Technical Modifications.
- Do not swivel the sun visors to the side if
you have any objects clipped onto them (for example pens).
If the airbag should deploy,
you could be injured by these objects.
- Use the built-in coat hooks only for light
weight clothing. Never leave any heavy or
sharp-edged objects in the pockets that may
interfere with airbag deployment and can
cause personal injury in an accident.
- Never use hangers to hang clothing from the hooks.
- Only use factory-installed sun shades or, in
the case of shades installed after the vehicle
leaves the factory, only Audi roll-up
sunscreens may be used
Q page 282, Addi
tional accessories and parts replacement .
-Always sit in proper seating position and
wear safety belts while traveling so that the
170
side curtain airbags can help provide protec
tion .
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once . If the airbag has been triggered, the
system must be replaced by an authori zed
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
- Always have work involving the side curtain
airbag system, removal and installation of
the airbag components, or other repairs
performed by an authorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop . Otherwise the airbag
system may not work correctly.
- Never attempt to modify any components of
the airbag system in any way.

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Important information
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision .
The physical principles of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash apply also to children
c:> page 144, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts? .
But unlike adults and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not fully
developed. In many respects children are at
greater r isk of serious injury in crashes than
adults .
Because children's bodies are not fu lly devel
oped, they requ ire restraint systems especially
des igned for their size, we ight, and body struc
ture. Many countr ies and all states of the United
States and provinces of Canada have laws requir
ing the use of approved child restraint systems
for infants and small children .
In a frontal crash at a speed of 20-3 5 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-pound
(6 kg) infant will be more than 20 times the
weight of the child . This means the weight of the
child would suddenly be more than 260 pounds
(120 kg) . Under these conditions, only an appro
priate child restraint properly used can reduce
the risk of serious injury . Child restra ints, like
adult safety belts, must be used properly to be
effect ive. Used improperly, they can increase the
risk of serious injury in an accident .
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's in
structions in order to be sure the seat is right for
your child's size
c:> page 174, Important safety
instructions for using child safety seats .
Please
be sure to read and heed all of the important in
formation and WARNINGS about child safety,
Advanced Airbags, and the installation of child restraints in this chapter.
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad
vanced Airbags in your vehicle and how they work
when infants and children in chi ld restraints are
on the front passenger seat . Because of the large
amount of important information, we cannot re-
Ch ild safety
peat it all here. We urge you to read the detailed
information in this owner's manual about airbags
and the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
and the very important information about trans
porting children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they are
extremely important for your safety and the safe
ty of your passengers, especially infants and small chi ldren.
_& WARNING
- Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than in the front seating position . Always restrain
any child age 12 and under in the rear.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly restrained child cou ld be injured by striking
the inter ior or by being ejected from the ve
h icle during a sudden maneuver or impact .
An unrestrained or improperly restrained
child is a lso at greater risk of injury or death
through contact w ith an inflating a irbag.
-A suitable ch ild restraint properly installed
and used at one of the rear seating positions
provides the h ighest degree of protect ion
for infants and small children in most acci
dent situat ions .
_& WARNING
f"-"----
Children on the front seat of any car even with
Advanced Airbags can be seriously injured or
even killed when an airbag inflates . A child in
a rearward-facing chi ld safety seat installed
on the front passenger seat will be seriously i njured and can be killed if the front airbag in
flates .
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild safety
seat or infant carr ier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child aga inst the backrest, center armrest, or
door.
- Always install rear-fac ing child safety seats
on the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat in
171

Child safety
exceptional circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system inspected immediately by your Audi dealer .
A WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in
stall a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing seat
has been designed and certified by its man
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's instruc
tions provided with the child safety seat or
carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air
bag as possible before installing the child
restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to
an upright position.
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched on.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were in stalled in a vehicle during a crash. Damage to
a child restraint that is not visible could cause
it to fail in another collision situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with a front "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time
your vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle has
been certified to meet the "low-risk" require
ments for 3- and 6-year old children on the pas
senger side and small adults on the driver side.
The low risk deployment criteria are intended to
172
reduce the risk of injury through interaction with
the airbag that can occur, for example, by being
too close to the steering wheel and instrument panel when the airbag inflates. In addition, the
system has been certified to comply with the
"suppression" requirements of the Safety Stand
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up to
12 months who are restrained on the front pas
senger seat in child restraints that are listed in
the Standard .
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an Ad
vanced Airbag system, all children, especially
those 12 years and younger, should always ride
in the back seat properly restrained for their age
and size. The airbag on the passenger side makes
the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a
child to ride. The front seat is not the safest place
for a child in a forward-facing child safety seat. It
can be a very dangerous place for an infant or a
larger child in a rearward-facing seat.
· Advanced Airbags and the weight-sensing
mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle de
tects the presence of an infant or child in a child
restraint on the front passenger seat using the
weight-sensing mat in the seat cushion and the
sensor below the safety belt latch on the front
passenger seat that measures the tension on the
safety belt.
The weight-sensing mat measures total weight
of the child and the child safety seat and a child
blanket on the front passenger seat . The weight
on the front passenger seat is related to the de
sign of the child restraint and its "footprint", the
size and shape of the bottom of the child re
straint as it sits on the seat . The weight of a child
restraint and its "footprint" vary for different
kinds of child restraints and for the different
models of the same kind of child restraint of
fered by child restraint manufacturers.
The weight ranges for the individual types,
makes and models of child restraints that the
NH TSA has specified in the Safety Standard to
gether with the weight ranges of typical infants
and typical 1 year -old child have been stored in ..,.

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When a child restraint is being used on the front
passenger seat with a typical 1 year-old child, the
Advanced Airbag System compares the weight measured by the weight sensing mat with the in
formation stored in the electronic control unit .
The electronic control un it also registers the ten
sion on the front passenger safety belt. The ten
sion on the safety belt for the front passenger
seat will be different for an adult who is properly
using the safety belt as compared to the tension
on the belt when it is used to attach a ch ild re
stra int to the seat. The senso r below the latch for
the safety belt for the front seat passenger
measures the tens ion on the belt. The input from
this sensor is then used with the weight to "de
cide", whether there is a child restraint wit h a
typical 1 year-old child on the front passenger
seat and whether or not the airbag must be
turned off.
Child restraints and Advanced Airbags
Regardless of the child restra int that you use,
make sure that it has been cert ified to meet Safe
ty Standards and has been certified by its manu
facturer for use wi th an airbag. Always be sure
that the child restraint is properly installed at
one of the rear seating positions . If in exception
a l circumstances you must use it on the front
passenger seat, carefully read all of the informa
tion on child safety and Advanced Airbags and heed all of the appl icable WARNINGS. Make cer
tain that the child restra int is correctly recog
nized by the weight-sensing mat inside the front
passenger seat, that the front passenger airbag
i s turned off and that the airba g status is always
correct ly signa led by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF lig ht.
Many types and models of child restraints have
been available over the years, new models are in
troduced regular ly incorporat ing new and im
proved designs and older mode ls are taken out o f
production . Chi ld restraints a re not standardized .
Child restraints of the same type typica lly have
different weights and sizes and different 'foot
prints, ' the s ize and shape of the bottom of the
child restraint that sits on the seat, when they
Child safety
are installed on a vehicle seat . These differences
make it virtua lly impossib le to certify compliance
with the requirements for advanced a irbags w ith
each and every child restraint that has ever been
sold in the past or will be sold over the course of
the useful life of your vehicle.
For t his reason, the United States National High
way Traffic Safety Admin istration has published a
list of spec ific type, makes and models of ch ild
restra ints that must be used to certify compli
ance of the Advanced Airbag System in your vehi
cle with the su ppress ion requirements of Federa l
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208. These child
restraints are:
Subpart A -Car bed child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
A ngel Guard Angel September 2S, 2007
Ride AA2403FOF
Subpart B - Rear-facing child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Century SmartFit 4543 December 1,
1999
Cosco Arriva September 25, 2007
22-013PAW and base
22-999WHO
Evenflo Discovery Ad- December 1, 1999
just Right 212
E venflo First Choice December 1, 1999
204
Graco Infant 8457 December 1, 1999
Graco Snugride September 25, 2007
Peg Perego Primo Viag -September 25, 2007
g io SIP IMUNOOUS
Subpart C -Forward-facing and convertible
child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Britax Roundabout September 25, 2007
E9L02xx
Cosco Touriva 02519 December 1, 1999
173